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A Japanese court has ruled that the lack of legal recognition for same-sex marriage violates the constitution in the country’s first such decision on equal marriage.
The Sapporo district court on the northern island of Hokkaido ruled on Wednesday, Kyodo News said, in the first of a series of similar compensation lawsuits filed by same-sex couples in five courts across the country. The three couples who took part in Wednesday’s case said their rights had been violated because equality and freedom of marriage were enshrined in the constitution, public broadcaster NHK said.
“This is an important decision for me as well the hope it will be an opportunity to realize that marriage is a right that should be granted to all people equally, ”said Masa Yanagisawa, head of Prime Services Japan at Goldman Sachs, who is also on the board of the campaign group. Marriage For All.
The Sapporo court rejected the plaintiffs’ claim for damages from the government, but ruled in its ruling that the lack of access for same-sex couples to some of the rights granted to heterosexual couples constitutes discrimination, Kyodo said.
It remains to be seen whether the other district court cases result in similar decisions and whether there will be an appeal to a higher court.
While a number of local authorities have begun to recognize same-sex partnerships, Japan has made little progress towards equal marriage compared to Western countries. This can leave couples without basic rights, such as the opportunity to visit a partner in hospital.
In Asia, only Taiwan has so far recognized same-sex marriage, although Thailand could make the change immediately after this year.
A long way forward
Asia lags far behind Europe and America in terms of marriage equality
Source: Foundation for the Human Rights Campaign
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga told parliament last month that the constitution, unchanged since 1947, does not provide for the recognition of same-sex marriage. The issue “concerns the foundations of the family in this country and must be considered with extreme caution,” he said.
A more modest bill to promote understanding of LGBTQ people drafted by a Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker has not yet made progress toward becoming law.
(Updates with details of the decision from the fourth paragraph)